Former Mayor Objects To Renaming Tunnel

May 7, 1986|By Stephen d`Oliveira, staff writer

The state Legislature recently passed a bill renaming the New River Tunnel for the late Henry E. Kinney, a newspaperman who pushed hard for its development. The gesture, however, wasn`t appreciated by everyone.

In a telegram to State Sen. Tom McPherson, D-Fort Lauderdale, former Fort Lauderdale Mayor John Russell reminded McPherson of the political price some people paid for supporting the controversial project.

``As mayor I lost five commissioners and resigned only when the tunnel was completed,`` stated Russell`s telegram. ``Henry Kinney was a fine man, a friend and a good newspaper reporter, but the people of Fort Lauderdale built that tunnel and the credit is theirs alone.``

Kinney, who died last year, was a reporter for The Fort Lauderdale News. He later became Broward County bureau chief for The Miami Herald.

In 1956, city voters narrowly approved the tunnel 7,008-to-6,401.

The tunnel opened in 1960, replacing a two-lane drawbridge built in 1928.

BOYS WILL BE GIRLS

Most people didn`t notice, but not all of the contestants showed up for the Miss Ugly Oakland Park Contest on Youth Day. You can hardly blame them.

In response, Police Chief Ron Cochran said police ``do not routinely`` drop vagrants off at parks or boat ramps.`` However, he pointed out that police often ``don`t know where the hell to deposit them.

``Our problem is that the socially enlightened legislation that decriminalized drunkenness did not provide adequate detoxification facilities in the beginning, and it gets worse every year.``

Cochran ended his memo to Naugle with the following:

``I remind you that vagrancy, drunkenness or mental derangement are not crimes, and I welcome any suggestion you could offer as to how we deal with that increasing populace.``

WINNING ISN`T EVERYTHING

Vince Lombardi never mentioned it, but winning has its drawbacks.

After Fort Lauderdale City Hall soundly beat the Police Department in basketball the other day, challenges soon arrived from the Utilities Department, Parks and Recreation and the Fire Department.

The police also want a rematch, although no one`s certain why.

``I think we`ve created a monster,`` said Assistant City Manager Bob Baldwin.

HOW I SPENT .

A little vacation advice for warm-blooded Floridians. If you plan to travel north in the near future, it might be wise to take a winter coat.

This correspondent, while visiting friends in Maryland recently, nearly froze to death one cool Saturday evening for lack of any arctic clothing.

By Monday morning, a diagnosis of pneumonia was confirmed.

Upon a good doctor`s advice, I spent the next 3 1/2 days in the very competent care of the nurses at the Greater Laurel Beltsville Hospital.

In case you were wondering, spending one`s vacation in an out-of-state hospital does have its advantages.

You get plenty of rest, all the intravenous solution you could ask for and an occasional wheelchair ride to the X-ray room. Sightseeing, though, is limited to the view from your hospital room window.

JUDGE NOT

The lawyers committee for Broward Judge Steven Shutter`s judicial campaign recently sent this letter to hundreds of attorneys in Broward County.

It started off like this:

``Dear Colleague: As an attorney you are aware that the essence of our legal system is a competant, impartial and skilled judge.``

Judge Shutter found the spelling error quite humorous, but was quick to point out that responsibility for the blunder originated elsewhere.

``That error could never have come out of my office,`` he said. ``I have a computer with a dictionary in it.``